Never too late
by Hannio
Summary: Kari thought she had lost her chance with TK after taking too long to realise her feelings for him but there's always a chance to regain what's yours if you're willing to fight and play dirty to win. No one said love was easy!  Takari and Taito
1. Explanations

Never too late

By

Hannio

Chapter One

Explanations

**Disclaimer – **_None of the characters I mention in the below work of fiction belong to me in any fashion. I am merely using them for my own enjoyment._

**Author Note – **_This is a rewrite of a story I did ages ago. I felt like giving it another shot and actually attempting to finish it! Anyway I hope you enjoy it._

* * *

><p>"Jeez Kari, what's your rush, will you slow down for a moment? This isn't a race"<p>

Damn.

I closed my eyes for a brief second trying to ignore the flash of annoyance I felt when I heard Davis's voice call out for me. I had been hoping not to run into any of my friends during the walk to school.

Don't get me wrong or anything. I really do love my friends and I know I'm lucky to have them especially Davis who is one of the closest ones I have but right now at this moment in time it was really something I could do without.

I wasn't in the mood to be surrounded by his never ending supply of optimism and cheer. I was quite content to remain in a gloomy mood that was so well reflected in the weather.

Now I would have to attempt to be the Kari he was used to seeing, something I wasn't looking forward to attempting.

Still I adjusted my pace accordingly and slowed down so he could catch up with me. If I didn't then I would never hear the end of it.

"How you doing?" he asked as he came to a stop by me, he had been running but he barely looked out of breathe from it. I hoisted my backpack over my shoulder as I adjusted the umbrella I was holding so it was covering him as well. Not that it would do him much good mind you. He was already soaked through; Davis for some reason I never understood always dressed as though it was summer.

I noticed him watching me, clearly waiting for an answer so I smiled at him.

"I'm fine" I replied making my voice sound bright "Though it would be better if it wasn't raining, don't brush up against me Davis, I don't want to get wet"

He laughed, giving his head a violent shake so the water droplets landed on me. I rolled my eyes but remained silent just thankful that only Davis was there. He was great and a fantastic leader of the Digi Destined but he wasn't exactly well tuned with people's feelings. TK would have asked what was wrong with me by now but Davis merely accepted what people said to him as what they felt.

I gave a slight hiss, my hand coming up to rub absently at my chest. It was a feeling I was used to experiencing when I thought about TK nowadays.

It wasn't a physical pain, I was in great health but emotionally I was a wreck ever since I realised that I was actually in love with TK. I had always cared for him, it was impossible not to care for someone like TK but it had always been as a brother or a partner in crime. I had never thought of him any other way until recently when I began to see him in a different light. It had felt as though a switch had gone off in my head making everything clear for the first time.

I should have fallen for someone like Davis. He is a nice person, clever in lesson though from the way he acted you wouldn't think it. He's good looking, tall and slim with cinnamon coloured hair which fell messily over his head and those bright chocolate coloured eyes which always showed exactly what he was feeling. He tanned easily as well and just gave off the impression of light and fun.

And there was nothing there.

Absolutely no connection even though sometimes I wish there were. Loving someone like Davis, someone so open and friendly would be easy. Loving someone like TK was just hard.

There had been a time when Davis had like me in that way but he soon realised he was wasting his time and moved on leaving us with a comfortable friendship instead. I think he was dating someone but it's hard to keep up with him. He's like a whirlwind, you need to hold on tightly or you'll be blown away.

Now I thought about it I had heard a rumour that he was dating Ken, that would probably do him some good, if there was anyone who could handle him then it would be Ken. I hope they are happy together if they are. They both deserve it.

Anyway TK was something else, he really is but I'm not the only one who has noticed it. I don't know why I would be surprised by that fact. I mean TK is very good looking, not quite up to Yamato's standards yet but close enough. He's taller then Davis is and slimly built. His hair is naturally blond and he's pale. I think the thing which captures my attention, which has always attracted me, is his eyes. They were blue as in really blue but it was the expression in them that really clinched it for me. He looked kind, as though he had time to help everyone if they needed it.

I had decided to tell him how I felt, that I was in love with him when I ran literally into my older brother and Yamato, those two were always together though I could hardly blame them since they were dating.

That hadn't surprised me in the least; I was only surprised that it took them so long to actually admit how they felt for each other. It was pretty obvious to the rest of us.

Tai was aware of how I felt for TK which meant of course that Yamato did as well. When I told them what I was about to do they had shared a long look with each other before looking back at me. That was when Tai had told me that they suspected that TK was dating a girl in our school called Rhea.

I had stared at them blankly trying to figure out who the hell Rhea was and then it hit me like a ton of bricks. She was that stupid foreign exchange student from America. TK had been assigned to look after her. I guess I should have realised that he liked her when he mentioned her to me, how he thought she was great, I didn't pay any attention to it though. I mean this was TK, he thought everyone was great.

That had been last night that they told me about it and I barely slept a wink, all I could think about was today and how much I didn't want to go. I was torn between rage that he was taken and didn't tell me and just wanting to see him, to get a smile from him and the one handed hug he always gave me.

"Earth to Kari, come in Kari" I blinked and looked at Davis

"Huh?" I answered blinking at his annoyed look.

"Have you actually paid any attention to what I've just been saying for the past ten minutes or so?" he demanded putting his hand on his hips and tapping his foot against the floor, another sign that he was annoyed. I glanced around surprised to see that we were outside out class room already.

I had been so caught up in my own thoughts that I hadn't even noticed. No wonder Davis was annoyed.

"Sorry Davis" I apologised "I've just got a lot on my mind at the moment." He gave me a sharp look, his eyes scanning my face clearly noticing for the first time that I wasn't quite myself. I knew what he was seeing; I had seen it myself in the mirror. My light brown hair was perfect as usual but my skin was pale and I had large bags under my eyes indicating my lack of sleep the previous night. Even my light brown eyes seemed duller.

It was probably a natural reaction to someone who had just had their heart ripped out of their chest by someone who wasn't even aware that they had done it.

"Kari?" Davis said putting a reassuring hand on my forearm "Is everything okay?" he asked. I gave him my best impression of my normal smile.

"Absolutely" I replied brightly. I was good at this, perhaps I should consider becoming an actress instead of a photographer "I just didn't sleep very well last night, that's all" he stared at me for a moment with an unreadable look before he smiled.

"Well if you're sure then we should head in"

I sighed silently.

Here went nothing.

* * *

><p><strong>Author Note – <strong>_An update will hopefully be soon._


	2. Face to Face

Never too late

By

Hannio

Chapter Two

Face to Face

**Disclaimer – **_Kari, Ken, TK and Davis do not belong to me in any shape or form, they actually belong to the creators however Ari and Rhea do belong to me even though they don't feature heavily in the story at present time._

**Author Note – **_2 down, 8 to go! This chapter is once again written in Kari's POV though that will change in the next chapter. Anyway please enjoy and review. Thanks_

* * *

><p>He smiled at me the moment his eyes met mine, my heart felt like it stopped for a moment before it started pounding, fast and painfully against my chest, my palms turned sweaty, my legs felt unsteady and I felt like I was going to be sick with the amount of butterflies that were running riot in my stomach all from one look.<p>

I was surprised that the people around me couldn't hear my heart beating but they all simply continued their conversation as I felt a helpless smile come to my face in answer to TK's even as my eyes scanned his face, the same way they had done on a daily basis since the year before.

He looked as good as ever though that was no surprise, I couldn't remember the last time he had looked bad, even when we were in the Digital world and we were all covered in mud and god knows what else he still managed to look like he had been born to wear it. It made no sense to me how he did it because TK was unaware of his looks and if he had known about them he would have been embarrassed over it.

His hair looked mussed probably from the strong wind outside but other then that he was the same, his eyes still held the same twinkle they always did, the twinkle that strictly belonged to Takeru Takashi.

I lifted my hand and gave him a slight wave, cursing myself as I felt my cheeks warm which could only mean that I was now blushing, probably a lovely shade of pink

"Well you certainly look more cheerful now" a voice said breaking me out of my own thoughts, I turned my head and looked at Davis who was grinning at him. "It's a good thing as well, I was actually beginning to get worried about you then" I smiled at his concern and shrugged my shoulders. This was the effect that one small smile from TK had on me. If I ever felt upset or downhearted then I would immediately feel cheerful as if everything would be alright.

I couldn't really explain it, words were not my forte. If it had been a physical reaction then I could have taken a picture of it and shown people the way he made me feel but unfortunately it wasn't. TK would have been able to describe it perfectly, he was talented with words, some of the pieces he had written had already been published in magazines and he was the second in charge on the school newspaper.

"It's warmer in here" I answered as I became aware that Davis was waiting for an answer from me. My reply brought a grin to his face which made me smile. I turned and walked towards the back where my desk was situated. Davis sat at the front though it wasn't his choice, he would have been at the back with me if he could have gotten away with it. Davis sat with Ken however and Ken always sat at the front so Davis had to make do, not that he really minded regardless on how much he moaned about it.

I took my usual seat and got my books out smiling at my friend Ari as she took her seat next to me looking flushed and out of breath, clearly she had been running late yet again. I glanced away at the door in time to see Rhea walk into the room, one hand holding her textbook the other grasping the strap to her bag.

I studied her closely for the first time, she was no longer just an exchange student from America she was now the girl who was dating the boy I was in love with. I felt jealousy and anger twist in my stomach at the sight of her. I turned in time to see TK spot her, a large grin coming to his face as he sat up straighter and waved at her. An answering smile came to her face as she made her way over to take her seat next to him.

I curled my hand into a fist as I gritted my teeth, at that one moment in time I really hated her, a thought that had me sitting up straight and looking ahead of me in horror. I had never hated anyone in my life. I was Hikari Yagami, I was meant to be the child of light, the one who saw the good in everyone we met, even when Ken was the Kaiser I still gave him a chance and yet here I was hating a girl I had never even spoken to before and who I knew nothing about.

"Kari" I jumped and looked up to see Ken Ichijouji looking at me from where he stood by my desk.

"Hi Ken" I said noticing that my voice sounded sadder and softer then it had done before I sat down, the effects of TK smile wearing off leaving me feeling miserable again.

"Are you ok?" he questioned keeping his voice low "You were looking upset, upset at her" he nodded his head in the direction of Rhea, my eyes flickered over to see her talking to TK, whatever she was saying was making him smile. I bit the inside of my lip as I looked back at Ken who was watching my reactions carefully.

"Not at all" I replied calmly "Your imagination must be in overtime or something" he remained silent for a moment or two before sighing and speaking again

"As much as I hate to say this to you Kari and believe me I do. This whole predicament you find yourself in is actually your own fault"

"Huh?" I replied dumbly unable to take in what he said to me. He knelt down and rested his forearms against my table and spoke, his voice a low undertone that no one but me would be able to hear

"You have had every opportunity for the past year to tell TK how you felt about him but instead of doing it you put it off and off and now if what we see is right TK has found someone else who hasn't wasted time and you seem jealous" he glanced to them again and once more I found my eyes following the movement. She was ruffling his hair laughing as he tried to duck away from her. I looked swiftly away and focused on keeping my breathing steady. I had seen Tai do the same thing to Matt last night.

I took a deep steadying breathe in trying to ignore the tears that were threatening to fall. It took a moment but I managed to blink them away, once I was sure they were gone I looked up to stare into Ken's steady violet eyes. He was silent clearly waiting for me to say something to him.

I wanted to tell him he was wrong with his assumption and that he should learn to mind his own business until his opinion was asked for. The other half wanted to throw my arms around him and burst into tears and tell him everything. It would have been a relief to speak to someone who knew us both well and who saw us on a daily basis. Luckily I was saved from either situation as the teacher walked in at that moment forcing Ken to make his way back to his seat without another word.

I don't know how I managed it but somehow I was able to pay attention during the lesson and even managed to answer the question correctly, it went quickly for once and of course once the lesson was over he approached me, just as I knew he would do.

"Hi Kari" he said standing by my desk with his usual warm smile. His voice always made me smile, he sounded so nice and kind as if he actually cared. When he spoke about his brother then his voice would be filled with love. I wished he could sound that way when he spoke about me.

"Hiya TK" I replied forcing my voice to be cheerful and hoping against hope that for once he was in a perceptive mood. It was a forlorn hope though as his smile faded to be replaced by a concerned frown. He searched my eyes before speaking.

"Are you ok?" he asked, I almost rolled my eyes at the question, if one more person asked me today whether I was ok then I was going to open my mouth and scream.

"I didn't sleep too well that's all" I answered he looked unconvinced by my answer but didn't push it instead remaining silent. I hated silence between us so I spoke "What did you get up to last night then? Anything interesting?" I could see his mind trying to come up with an answer to what was really wrong with me "I err tried to call you last night but your mum said you were already out" he nodded his head

"I went to the cinema" he replied, I glanced down and took in his clothes which were different from the usual clothes he favoured. He was wearing jeans which were normal but he was wearing a black shirt with his brother's band logo on it and a light black jacket. I couldn't help but wonder whether Rhea had something to do with the suddenly change. I stood there for a moment struggling and feeling awkward when I heard a voice call to me.

"You ready to go Kari?" I could have cried as my eyes met Ken's and he gave me an understanding look as he waited for my reply to Davis's question. He was standing next to Ken looking impatient "Hey TK" he called out waving at TK who waved back

"Hey Davis, Hey Ken" he replied. I turned to TK and smiled at him ignoring the worried look which still lingered on his face,

"I'll see you later" I remarked, he nodded his head.

"Yeah you will" I forced myself to turn and walked toward the two waiting for me, the minute I was close enough Ken reached out and placed his hand on my elbow as a sign of comfort as he steered me out of the room without another word.

* * *

><p><em>Author Note – chapter two is done and dusted! Hope you enjoy it, please review but no flames. Thanks for taking the time to read it x<em>


End file.
